Warner Bros Animation
The second feature in the Batman Unlimited line of DC animated features hits this week with Monster Mayhem. Now this series is a big departure from other DC animated features as of late. Where most recent animated films from DC have aimed for the thirteen and older crowd Batman Unlimited is squarely aimed at the twelve and under crowd. The movie deals with Batman and friends fighting against some of his more monstrous foes (Scarecrow, Silver Banshee, and the zombie Solomon Grundy) on Halloween, as well as, of course, The Joker.
First let’s get the bad out of the way: this is a toy commercial. Much like its animated brethren from the eighties, Monster Mayhem is an eighty-minute toy pitch. Every character has a vehicle or an accessory that you just know you’ll be seeing on shelves at your local toy store. In fact Batman himself has, in addition to the standard Batmobile and Batplane, a robot wolf that turns into a motorcycle. I’ll repeat that because hey, it just bears repeating. A robot wolf that turns into a motorcycle!
But all things considered, if you’re looking for something for your younger children you could do far worse than Monster Mayhem. The animation is well done. Being that this is for a younger crowd the colors are all very bright and poppy, the character designs are a bit more cartoonish than usual, basically the edges have all been rounded off in this version. Some of the character designs are a bit off-putting, most notably Batman and Red Robin have these odd chin pieces to their masks that just look weird, and The Joker looks like he has cotton candy for hair. There’s some fun action and good characters that kids will love to watch. The voice actors are competent but not particularly memorable. If anyone stands out it would be Troy Baker as the Joker. Baker took over the role in the game Arkham Origins and much like it was in that project his voice is a really good impression of Mark Hamill’s iconic take on the role. A good impression though not a great one. It always sounds just a bit off. The rest of the cast is made up of lesser known actors like Kari Wuhrer, to DC animated veterans like Batman Beyond’s Will Friedle. Everyone does their job fine but no one really sticks out as memorable interpretations of the characters.
The Blu-ray comes with a behind-the-scenes featurette, an episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold, and ten DC Nation shorts that originally aired during commercial breaks on Cartoon Network. As usual, in an era of diminishing special features, Warner Bros Animation releases continue to be one of the few places that give you bang for your buck in terms of extra content. The featurette is nice enough, though it’s unlikely you’ll ever revisit it after a once over. The Batman: Brave and the Bold episode is one of the series more popular ones; it’s a musical featuring Neil Patrick Harris. The DC Nation shorts have to be the highlight though. They might only be a minute or so each but they are consistently funny, cute and interesting, especially Animal Man!
If you’re looking for the next violent dramatic DC animated film, this is not for you. Hang on to your cash because there are three films in that line coming out in the next year. However, if you’re a parent looking for some lite fare for your kids or maybe you’ve got a nephew, niece, or younger sibling who you’re trying to introduce to comic books then this is the movie for you. Fun and safe, though you might be buying the kiddies some toys soon after, Batman Unlimited: Monster Mayhem does exactly what it sets out to do.
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